Jan. 2, 2005
Final Stats
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - P.J. Tucker had 25 points and 10 rebounds to lead No. 15 Texas to an 89-82 victory over UNLV on Sunday night.
Texas (10-2) finally shook off the pesky Runnin' Rebels (6-5) late in the second half. The Longhorns trailed 67-65 with 5:50 to play after UNLV guard Michael Umeh nailed a 3-pointer from the left wing. But Texas went on a 12-1 run to take control.
Tucker's three-point play followed by his defensive rebound and no-look pass to LaMarcus Aldridge for a layup gave the Longhorns a 72-67 lead with 4:20 left. After Brad Buckman hit two free throws for Texas, Daniel Gibson passed to Jason Klotz for a fastbreak layup to give the Longhorns a 77-68 lead with 2:01 to play.
Romel Beck and Jerel Blassingame each had 17 points for UNLV.
UNLV trailed 48-40 early in the second half, but two 3-pointers by Blassingame and another shot from behind the arc by Beck within a 90-second span helped the Runnin' Rebels go on a 10-0 run to grab a 50-48 lead with 13:30 to play.
Beck hit consecutive 3-pointers to give UNLV an 18-13 lead, its largest of the first half.
Tucker then started to take over inside, scoring 11 points, and Kenny Taylor hit a 3-pointer from the right wing to help the Longhorns end the half on a 15-7 run and take a 40-34 lead.
